Hidden Malice
by Azure Raindrops
Summary: Some say he is the embodiment of the heavenly white angel that graces Soul Society with its appearance every Some call him child genius; Toshiro All he knows is that he's worked hard for his title of "Captain" - he's never cared for that talk, but a new stirring evil seems to believe Hitsugaya x
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** So, after a few busy months, I've decided to try my hand at writing an OC Fanfic, for Bleach; which is probably my newest obsession. XD I'm rather new to this fandom (and I haven't quite finished the manga/anime), so if anything's off, please notify me. That said, this may be slightly AU as some events that happened in the manga may not have occurred in this timeline.

I certainly hope that I've managed to keep the canon characters in character. On another little note, this fanfic was actually rewritten. Two times, in fact. I decided I like this a lot better than the other version; the first attempt wasn't good, the second was too short.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Bleach or the characters in it; Tite Kubo does. I however, do own my OCs; which have yet to appear. XD

* * *

The soft, chilly wind swept through the pavilion nestled deep in the heart of the 10th Division barracks, sending a stray lock of pale hair fluttering before the lone occupant of the area's face. He stood with his katana drawn, the long blade held out in front of him, a slender hand wrapped around the hilt, resting lightly just behind the hand guard. If anyone had passed him, they left him be - it wasn't like they had nothing to do, nor did they wish to disturb their Captain.

Slowly; gradually, the figure - who looked no more than a boy - cracked open his eyes, revealing a startling turquoise hue beneath. The wind grew from a breeze to a gust as the temperature in the atmosphere plunged in an instant, almost as if the sun had suddenly vanished. Frost began to crystallize on the ground and on any nearby portions of the buildings; a white blanket blanching anything and everything of its colour. The boy frowned in concentration: a heartbeat later, the few flakes of snow the wind had carried turned into a flurry swirling in the middle of the rectangular space.

The column of snow did nothing to obscure the view of the ice forming - in midair, at that - into the form of a chiseled reptilian head. It spread downwards, crafting the neck, body, then tail of the vast creature snake-like creature in mere seconds. The serpent, no, dragon, was completed as the wings finally took shape, facing; arcing forward.

Piercing red eyes bore into green as the flurry died, and all was still.

A small smile graced the boy's lips - wherever he went, his claim of being the captain of the 10th Division was often regarded with skepticism - most found the idea that this mere child could possibly be so powerful, and have attained bankai. For his zanpakuto was living proof of his achievement - the strongest of the ice-type soul cutters, the ruler of the water, ice, and sky: Hyorinmaru. The frozen entity had appeared before him in his dreams all those years ago; together, they had stood against countless enemies - two souls, one intention, one dream.

"Hyorinmaru," the white-haired boy said evenly, gazing up with lidded eyes, completely ignoring the state of his environment - it was something he had gotten used to a long time ago, just another side effect of his zanpakuto's power. "It's been some time. The last time we spoke like this was nearly a month ago."

The dragon dipped its head, surprisingly silent and graceful for it's size. The ice that it was formed out of was fluid and clear, shimmering and gleaming underneath the sun, free of any impurities that could occasionally be found when the solid was formed under certain conditions. "Indeed it has, Master."

"I've been busy lately," he continued, his tone evidently suggesting that he hadn't just been busy, he'd been busier than usual. With what shouldn't have been his work, no less. He elaborated with a wave of his hand, before crossing his arms over his chest and shifting his stance, legs approximately shoulder-width apart: "There's been an influx in paperwork."

The boy's mouth twisted wryly. "Of course, Matsumoto's being of no use, as usual." It was no surprise - she was the cause for the problem; an increase in the piles for him he could handle; doing nearly all the paperwork for the 10th Division was another matter. "She's probably still drunk right now, or at least suffering from a 'headache'. Usually, others tend to refer to it as a hangover, but she seems to have other ideas." He remembered the last time they'd discussed that topic.

_"Headache? I can't fathom you doing anything that that could possibly hurt that brain other yours," he said, scowling down at the sheet of paper on his desk, eyes murderous, while Matsumoto scratched her head from where she stood near the window._

_"Well, eh, it was the paperwork. You know, I do it every day -" At her Captain's dubious look as he lifted his head, she quickly added, "- or at least almost every day. Every week? Every once in a while? Oh look! What's that outside? I think I'll investigate; I'll report back to your later~" _

_He glanced through the window she was pointing at - nothing seemed out of the ordinary - there were several officers leaving their offices, obviously in a good mood; but it wasn't as if the event was anything out of the ordinary. When he looked back at where his Lieutenant had been standing moments earlier, he found empty air. _

_A sigh. He penned the next sentence of the report warily, before repeating the proccess again._

_He'd deal with her when she came back._

The ice dragon uncoiled itself by a margin, frozen scales rippling; gleaming blue, teal, and white in the sun. There was no hesitation as the serpentine head extended forward to touch the 10th Division Captain's outstretched hand lightly, before it drew back once again.

"There's still paperwork from last week. I'm going to go check up on Matsumoto."

Hyorinmaru didn't speak; he was quiet as he felt his master slowly release his hold on him, retracting the foothold that he needed to remain in the physical world. The dragon closed his eyes as the ice that formed him shattered, slowly shrinking and dissolving into the wind that carried the shards; now fine pieces the size of sand grains, away.

_'Patience, young one.'_

Within seconds, the frost and cold were gone, more or less.

* * *

It was the gurgle the man at the back made as he fell that alerted the rest of the (rather small) team. The leader whirled, eyes widening, taking in the scene as he felt the presence of the Shinigami's Reiatsu gradually slip away. The rest of the members were shocked; he could feel the surprise emanating from each of them, and bit back a curse - the whole team was practically a large sitting duck.

He focused on his surroundings, and felt his men come out of their stupor and mirror his actions, searching for; wondering about what exactly had taken their comrade down. It had been a rather clean, yet deep, slash - his head was nearly severed from his body, and he'd been lying in a pool of his own blood by the time he disintegrated into spirit particles. The wound couldn't be from claws or teeth - it was evidently dealt by a blade.

Whatever had caused the damage couldn't be good - it knew well enough to mask it's own Reiatsu, and it knew how to do it _well_.

The whole team's heads snap to their rear as the person or creature; the thing, lets loose a tiny portion of it's Reiatsu - whether it was on purpose or not, they weren't sure. The only thing they knew was that as the cloud drifted away from the moon to reveal it's light; which had taken less than a minute on the particular windy night, two more Shinigami lay dead, one who seemed to have put up a fight. Not that it did him much good.

The shadow flashed before them once again, but this time, before it could reach it's intended target, it was met with a roar of frustration and anger.

"Bastard!" One of the Leader's men surged forward, sword drawn in one hand. His other hand was extended, palm perpendicular to the ground. "Hado #31! Shakkaho!"

The bright flash of red surged forward, only to be cut off by the creature's arm. It slashed through the beam, effectively dissipating it. The Shinigami's mouth hung open, before he closed it in grim determination; determination to find another way to bring about the end of his opponent. He never quite got the chance, as the creature closed in with startling speed.

In the end, he suffered the same fate as his three other comrades - a swift decapitation.

It was then, in the bright moonlight of that particular day, the leader, the 14th Seat of the 10th Division, shuddered as he managed to take in the creature's form from behind as it paused to take a break for a mere second. It's body was white, with thick black and white patterns etched onto it's skin; the humanoid beast's arms ended in a metallic sickle instead of a normal hand, a sickle now covered in the precious crimson liquid of his team. Their blood. And it was then, that he fell to his knees in front of his team, hugging himself - as if the strings of tension that had been holding him up had snapped. A shiver ran down the length of his body; once, then twice.

A Hollow? But it couldn't be; there was no mask - that was clear as it turned it's head towards them, and the tell-tale hole in it's chest was absent. It looked back at them, before taking off yet again.

In that moment, it hit him - what could someone like him possibly do against that creature? That beast? That abomination?

For the first time in a few hundred years, the man wasn't sure if he could defeat their enemy. If they could defeat _it_. Perhaps that was what caused him to make his next decision.

"R-re-retreat. The Captain needs to know of this situation," he muttered, almost to himself. And in a stronger voice - "Retreat! The cost is too high!"

A cackle rang through the area, high and shrill, as if saying, 'Go ahead and do just that, you fools. Go and run away with your tails tucked between your legs.'

And as quickly as it had come, it was gone.

* * *

The white-haired boy moved out of the pavilion with silent footsteps, eyes cast downward. A passing Shinigami that was taking the other way around the pavilion took no notice of him - which could either have been due to his masked Reiatsu, or to the officer's haste in delivering a pile of paperwork to another person's desk. (Or possibly due to his size, but he refused to think about that. After all, he wasn't that hard to see, was he?)

He grimaced. If the pile was intended for him, he feared for the messenger - there was no guarantee they'd make it out alive and sane. He certainly didn't need a new addition to the pile of four or three (he hoped it was three) piles that sat unfinished on his desk. The temperature lowered by a fraction of a degree as he glared at the papers. The Reiatsu gave him away, and the Shinigami turned and started walking in his direction, seemingly alarmed at his 'sudden appearance'.

"Oh! Captain Hitsugaya, good day to you." The man dropped into a shallow and curt bow, before adding, to explain the papers in his hands, "There's been a mix-up - apparently this is supposed to go to the 11th Division, and not us."

After being in a certain Kurosaki's presence for so long, hearing his proper title seemed like a blessing. He didn't understand - what did the orange haired male not understand about the fact that he didn't want to be called Toshiro? He didn't even want to start on Momo. _Shiro-chan this and Shiro-chan that. _Despite living with her when he was younger, women were still a mystery to him. (The girl was lucky she was his childhood friend, anybody else who insulted or 'insulted' him like that wouldn't get off so easily.)

"I see; then you can deliver it to them now." There was no complaint, or answer, as the man sped off in the direction of the 11th Divison, more commonly known among the Shinigami as the Zaraki Corps. _'Try to make it back in one piece as well.'_

Hitsugaya continued on. He quickened his steps as he neared the back wall of his office; his shared office with his (useless-in-terms-of-paperwork) Lieutenant. As he rounded the corner sharply to one of the side walls, he blinked and stopped as he spotted the all too familiar busty figure suddenly appear; the back of her head facing him as she took a long, surveying glance behind her. Needless to say, she froze as she registered the cough from in front.

There was a pregnant pause as she slowly turned around. She stared at him, almost uncomprehendingly - hands slack by her sides, as a finger twitched slightly. He raised an white eyebrow in inquiry: Where did she think she was going? She seemed to be taking avoiding paperwork to a whole new level.

"... You shouldn't creep up on people like that, Captain," she said, with a countenance that would've been considered earnest by anyone that didn't know her - he of course, had other suspicions. Matsumoto looked innocent, for the most part, save for the slight upward tilt of her lips.

Hitsugaya, on the other hand, was not nearly as amused. The 10th Division Captain crossed his arms. "You were walking towards me."

Matsumoto went on, as if she hadn't heard him. "It's not polite to sneak up on a lady like that, you know."

He only glared at her in silence.

Seeing that the tactic was not getting her anywhere, or at least it wasn't getting her anywhere she wanted, the golden haired woman dropped the topic, and opted for the relatively more neutral option. "So, say Captain, what are you doing here?"

He countered easily - "I think the more relevant question would be what are _you_ doing here, Matsumoto?"

"Eh," the woman, who seemed to have everything to say earlier, seemed to be at a loss for words. "Taking a small break, you know?"

The white haired boy hadn't lifted his glare, and if possible, was now boring his eyes even harder into the lieutenant. Small break? If her definition of a small break would be the regular excursions she took from the office, he shuddered to think about what her definition of a large break would be. Perhaps being absent for a whole month? When he spoke, his voice was deathly calm.

"From what, exactly?" And in a much drier tone, "By the way - there's a reason we have a door in the office."

"Paperwork? And I thought I could take a..." Matsumoto trailed off. "Short cut."

Hitsugaya snorted. "If you're planning to find Kira or Hisagi, then the window would be the _long_ way around. Especially if you're inching along the wall."

"Going out to drink? What could ever give you that idea?" Matsumoto quickly asked, blinking, once again, innocently.

"So you admit it."

"Of course not! I never said so!"

"Fanastic. Why don't you get back to work then?"

The lieutenant huffed, rolling her eyes. She should have seen that one coming. Matsumoto had to admit he'd got her there - well, almost. If she refused, it would more or less prove that she was going out for a drink - which she was, for a fact - but if she did accept, then she would be stuck in the hellish hole of an office. Her chances of escaping didn't seem very high, especially with her captain standing in front of her, but it was worth a try, she figured.

"Immediately~"

And with that, the golden haired woman made off for the 10th Divison Gate, and was getting ready to _Shunpo _before she felt the sudden drop in the temperature and the bark that almost always came with it: "Matsumoto. Matsumoto!" She shivered slightly, watching as her breath solidified then disappeared.

He wasn't blocking the doors, but perhaps it was because she was feeling oddly compliant that day, or perhaps it was because she didn't want to be turned into a human popsicle. At any rate, the Lieutenant stopped in her tracks, tilting her head at Hitsugaya.

"The door's this way." He jerked a finger in the direction of the said object, which had been left open by a crack.

"Oh. Oh yeah." A pause. "Silly me."

* * *

It was a few hours later, and with some persuasion - most rather unpleasant and forceful, Hitsugaya felt accomplished. Matsumoto sat behind her desk, grumbling as she filled out a few of the last forms that required her signature, while he, who had finished filing some reports away just moments prior, felt the weight of the paperwork lifted from his shoulders.

Most of the times, getting Matsumoto into the office, and making her stay, let alone making her pen touch the paper, was a million times harder than actually doing the paperwork.

"Aaaaand, done!" As soon as she finished the last word, the woman practically lept away from her desk, immediately beelining for the exit. Hitsugaya waved her off offhandedly, it wasn't like she needed the encouragement anyway.

"Two days," he muttered to himself, staring at the wall, distracted. Matsumoto, who he didn't think would have heard, paused.

"What?"

"Two days. The 7th seat. Takezoe usually finishes his missions quickly, it shouldn't be hard taking care of three hollows with almost a dozen people. They still haven't come back."

"Captain, they probably just got distracted on the way, or someone got injured and they're tending to him or her before they come back. Jeez, loosen up. They'll be fine."

"What if it's something else?" he snapped back, turquoise eyes rising to meet hers.

"What's the likelyhood? I'm sure he can handle himself, with, as you said, a dozen men. There's a reason he's the 7th seat."

He saw her reason, and yet, he was still hesitant. Slightly unsure, the boy nodded and sighed, prompting Matsumoto to cast her eyes skyward, once again. "No wonder your hair's white," she muttered, which was met with a sharp, "Hey!"

* * *

**Glossary**

_Hado: Way of Destruction  
Shakkaho: Red Fire Cannon_

* * *

**A/N:** And, done. The latter scene was a bit longer than expected, but oh well. This chapter isn't that bad for one afternoon, I suppose. XD The OCs will probably make an appearance in the next few chapters, in perhaps two.

So, as mentioned before, do you guys think Toshiro was okay? I swear, I'm terrified of writing OOC. XD

Thank you very much for reading. c:

-Azure


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:** So, first things first. I'm slightly; scratch that, quite busy right now. With school and all. Although my original plan was to update once every week, I'm going to say that it's more likely going to be every other week. If I'm not being overloaded with work that is. Please bear with me.

Aside from that, this is the second chapter! My main OCs, if anyone was curious, will appear in the next chapter, from what I planned so far. If anyone doesn't remember, Takezoe is canon, and is the 7th Seat of the 10th Division. He won't play a huge part in this story; this is just the beginning.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Bleach or the characters in it; Tite Kubo does. I however, do own my OCs.

* * *

For the first time in Kokichiro Takezoe's life, the dark haired man was at a loss; all motivation for action, gone. And so he sat - crumpled, staring at a patch of earth somewhere off in the distance. Strangely, the grief he though he would have felt for his comrades was absent; it was as if a huge, gaping hole had been torn into his heart; tearing open a path for the emotions to escape. With fingertips digging into the ground roughly, a shudder ran through his body. How was he to face his men? How was he supposed to explain to his Captain? And God forbid, the fallen Shinigami's friends and family. He'd failed them. Every single -

The heavy-set man looked up in surprise as he felt the hand tentatively touch his shoulder, eyes dark and unfocused. They were going to accuse him, to reject him as their leader, he thought dazedly, and he didn't blame them.

Takezoe's eyes widened even further, pupils dilated. He searched the face gazing down at him desperately; wildly, the soft sounds that rolled off the newcomer's tongue faded into mere background noise. Somewhere from deep within his throat, he let out a strangled cry - or rather, the word sound described it better. His head and body bowed again, his forehead nearly touching the damp foresty floor; strewn full of dead twigs and withered leaves. He raised a fist and brought it crashing back onto the ground - the 7th seat hadn't mean to, but he'd concentrated some of his own Reiryoku into that hand - resulting in a shallow crater and a minute wave of wind. Displaced leaves floated through the air, and the hand resting on his shoulder lifted in alarm.

More sounds.

And yet, as he closed his eyes, he could still see _their_ faces. Laughing. Teasing. Joking. His sense of pride, his pride in the unit he could call _his_. Them, all training together. Getting promoted. Drinking in the their barrack, courtesy of their Lieutenant. Sparring, and katanas drawn. _Blood_. The gurgle of a cut throat. Eyes widened in disbelief, not believeing, not realizing that they had been bisected. More blood. Screams and groans. Silence. Somewhere between one memory and another, the faces had transformed from amused into tormented.

The groans started once again, and Takezoe desperately shook his head to clear the noise. It gradually subsided, fading into murmurs. With a start, his eyes snapped open to meet the vastly confused and worried gaze of a blue-eyes Shinigami.

The sounds began to gain meaning. "Sir." A slight shake as a hand descended on each of his shoulders. "Sir, are you alright?"

Takezoe, watched, not quite comprehending. Was he okay? Were they? In an instant, he could see the fallen Shinigami's last moments again. No, he couldn't afford think about that now, not after -

He choked up, shuddering once again.

"Me?" he finally ground out, blinking like an owl, at last answering the question he belatedly realized was directed at him. _Why so worried about me?_

"Yes, sir. You."

"I - " A million thoughts; a million possible answers flashed through his mind. He took a deep breath, before raising himself up off of the ground, and to his full height labourously. Another deep breath. In. Out. In. Out. "I'm okay."

It didn't come out as he'd expected; his voice cracked mid-way. "I'm okay," he repeated, this time sounding much more assertive, and authoritive.

"Report - our status?" Takezoe asked, glancing at the other male, who seemed to be letting out a sigh of relief.

"Six mave made it, although Murata is injured."

The dark haired man frowned. An injury? That couldn't be good. The face of the young, ash blond flashed before his eyes. He hadn't been aware, especially with...

"The scout you sent back then," was the elaboration.

"Where's he now?" His gaze was directed by a finger to a nearby tree, with a youth underneath, who was practically lying in a pool of his own blood; a large quantity, potentially life threatening, even by Shinigami standards.

"Sir. We tried to move him earlier, but it didn't go too well. He's going to die if he doesn't get medical care soon. I don't think he can last long enough for us to get him to the innermost districts, much less the 4th Division."

"We'll have to get 'im help some other way," he asserted, frown deepening. The other Shinigami had a point - they were in the middle of nowhere - the edge of the 46th District in Eastern Rukongai, to be exact. Had they been in the 1st or 2nd District, it might have been a different story; however, residents of the district they were currently in didn't seem to particularly take to Shinigami - rather, they were considered to be the ones that were ignoring the residents, according to some souls.

"If we can find someone that will take us, or at the very least him - " He jabbed a finger in the wounded and unconsious blond's direction, "in, then that would be ideal."

Apparently, that was the unanimous signal for, 'Use any method required to get us a place for the time being.'

* * *

Nearly an hour later, the ragged group of seven stood in front of an unassuming and low-lying one-story house somewhat close to their original position. The owner of the house wasn't so thrilled. The girl brandished the spoon in front of her, practically giving the evil eye to the Shinigami as they passed the threshold of the building.

She grumbled as she followed the group into the foyer of the house, where the living room and the kitchen could clearly be seen. There were several raised eyebrows at the pot of simmering soup that sat in her kitchen, and the half diced vegetables along with a few measly chunks of meat.

"Why my house, you barbarians?" the girl was muttering, cracking the spoon against her hand. "Why not the house next door? What's up with you guys? One minute my life was totally normal, and I was just making dinner. The next, that green-haired dude," A finger was pointed, "just busted down my door, and was holding his freakin' sword by my neck, saying that if I want to live, I need to let you guys stay in my house. Well, you know what? I demand an explanation! Why do you need to stay? And who the hell are you?"

There was a sheepish laugh from one of the men, as he rubbed his head, and the rest were silent.

"Oh, so you expect that you can just barge into my house like you own it? You better watch out in your sleep! And when you eat! With every step you take in my house, don't you forget that when you least expect it, be prepared to feel the wrath of my trusty - "

"Spoon?" A tall, gangly blond, with green eyes finally interjected, staring. "I apologize, but we need to stem the flow of blood from our friend as soon as possible."

This brought her up short. "... What happened to him?"

"We're not certain, but we believe it's from," the blond paused, searching for the right words, "the opponent we were up against earlier."

The red-haired girl didn't say anything for the longest time, until finally, "Katsuko. Come on out, and help the guy bleeding to death on the ground. I think it's safe, so you don't need your spoon." Silence, as another girl bearing evident blood connections to the first appeared from behind a stack of boxes with the house, wooden utensil dangling from her left hand. "Besides, I'm evidently more proficient with it than you."

Katsuko nodded, nervously glancing at the strangers as if looking for confirmation that they weren't going to attack her. "Um, maybe," she murmured back, as she set the spoon on the ground delicately and motioning for the other girl to fetch her some supplies - which turned out to be a roll of bandages, some water, and a curious looking plant that appeared nearly blue, with white flowers.

The sun was beginning to set as the group of Shinigami and the two girls sat in circle in the living room of the house; the clouds outside the window tinted every shade of pink, orange, and purple. The injured Shinigami was lying on a spare tatami mat that had been discovered in the bedrooms, bandaged and sleeping rather peacefully for someone who had nearly died just hours ago.

"Well. I suppose we'll need some introductions," the elder of the two sisters muttered, tracing a pattern on the ground, while eyeing the men. "I'm Anda Shibue, and this is my sister, Katsuko."

The names were in given in turn; Kokichiro Takezoe of the 10th Division - the dark haired and dark eyed man was evidently hiding a scowl, as he refused to look the two females in the eye. Next was Kyoshi Yoshitomi - the brusque, green haired and muscular young man with violet eyes, who was grinning at Katsuko eerily. Shoyo Shiokawa was a short and thin unassuming male with brown hair and amber eyes who was much to quiet for his own good; for the largest portion of the conversation, he did an impressive job of not responding to any comments. Finally, there was Suzu Osagawa - a red-head with blue eyes and Yasayuki Shirane; the blond who had spoken out previously.

A finger was jerked in the wounded man's direction. "And that's Murata. Kentaro Murata," Yasayuki supplied, as the group dipped into a period of quiet once more.

"So. You're staying for the night, right?" The elder sister tapped the ground with her spoon impatiently. "Your rooms will be at the end of the hallway there. It shouldn't be hard to find - the house isn't a maze, or anything. Just the two at the end, on opposite sides." She drew a quick diagram - there was a narrow corridor extending towards the bedrooms, one of which would be taken by the sisters and two which would be inhabited by the Shinigami.

"If I find that any of you are bad, untrustworthy, or try to hurt my sister, you'll pay." Anda raised her spoon menacingly, and with that utterly terrifying threat that could be taken a number of ways, she stood up and padded across the house to the kitchen, about to dip the spoon into the soup again.

There was a sudden curse - "Damnit! The spoon's dirty now."

* * *

There was a evident sigh from the white haired boy as he jabbed his pen into the inkwell, and back onto the paper, repeating the process every half a minute or so - the ink dried much too quickly for his liking. The fact that almost all the reports were related one way or another to some form of a demand or a status report didn't help - every day, the same routine, virtually the same papers. Sometimes, just sometimes, he didn't blame Matusmoto for wanting to shirk her duties.

The small, cramped writing he was being forced to do in the tiny box didn't alleviate his foul mood either, in fact, if he were to write any smaller, he doubted anyone could see. Why couldn't someone have been considerate enough to at least double the size of the box? Heck, even if it were a bit wider or a bit taller, life would've been a lot easier.

He bit his lip lightly in concentration as he finished up his thought, before raising the paper up as he stared at it. Done - and there were only two - no, three left.

Hitsugaya's eyes widened marginally as he took in the information on the next sheet of paper. He'd seen the format and the type of report before, but it hadn't been often that he would actually be in charge of stating the status of a Shinigami - 'Missing in Acton' - which in most cases, was a synonym for 'Good as dead'.

His eyes widened even further as he flipped the page up, finding a similar document underneath - both featured what had looked to be most promising young Shinigami - a man who appeared to be in his twenties who couldn't been considered handsome had it not been for the frown marring his features, and the other couldn't have been much older than him - with dark, innocent eyes framed by brown hair.

With his mouth set in a tight line, he flipped the paper up so it would join the first and reveal the last document. The white haired captain nearly heaved a sigh of relief at not finding another, before his hand froze, and promtly began to shake. Killed in action?... He hadn't been aware at all; none of the events had been reported to him, well, save for the last which he was pretty sure someone had mentioned nearly a month ago. But why would the paper only be processed now? He was certain of the fact that the set of paperwork he had been working on arrived the previous morning.

He bolted up rigidly, mouth already forming words before he thought them over. "Matsumoto!" No response. He shoved his way out of the door, breaking out into a Shunpo as soon as he was out of the office, watching as the barracks of the his division disappeared behind him.

Either somebody thought those reports weren't important, or somebody was trying to keep things away from him.

* * *

A/N: So, the plot's moving. Er, a tiny bit? At least they know someone's missing. XD I don't think there are typos, although it's possible there are some. (If anyone wants to help beta this story, that would be much appreciated).

Hope you liked it, and reviews would be much, much appreciated.

-Azure


	3. Important Notice

**A/N: **First of all, I'd like to take the time now to thank everyone for reading Hidden Malice. (For those of you who have read it. Shame on you if you just decided to skip to the last chapter. o3o) However, I do not plan to continue this version of the story - I'm constantly trying to improve my writing, and after going over my plot and first two chapters, I have decided, once again, that I don't like it too much.

That said, I am just rewriting the story - if you're interested, feel free to find the rewritten story under the same name. The reason for making a new story as opposed to just editing this one is because the the plot has changed somewhat - the overall plot's the same, but the stuff that happens in the first few chapters is different. Also, I have OCD.

So, thank you again for reading if you did enjoy the first two chapters, and this version of the story will be taken down in around a week's time.

-Azure


End file.
